Category: 2. World

HOVELTE: Peering across a dense stretch of woodland outside of Denmark’s capital with camouflage paint smeared across her face, 20-year-old Katrine scans the horizon for approaching threats.

After nearly four months of military training, the young soldier and the rest of her unit spent early June completing their final exercises near the Danish army’s barracks in Hovelte, 25 kilometers (15 miles) north of Copenhagen.

Katrine and other female soldiers, all of whom spoke to The Associated Press on June 11 on the condition that only their first names be used because of operational security, volunteered for military service earlier this year. Until now, that was the only way for women to be part of the armed forces.

The Scandinavian country is seeking to increase the number of young people in the military by extending compulsory enlistment to women for the first time. Men and women can both still volunteer, and the remaining places will be filled by a gender-neutral draft lottery.

“In the situation the world is in now, it’s needed,” Katrine said. “I think it’s only fair and right that women participate equally with men.”

Under new rules passed by Denmark’s parliament earlier in June, Danish women who turn 18 after Tuesday will be entered into the lottery system, on equal footing with their male compatriots. The change comes against a backdrop of Russian aggression and growing military investment across NATO countries.

Russia’s looming threat

Even from the relative safety of Denmark, Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine casts its shadow. Lessons from the Ukrainian battlefields have even filtered down into their training.

“That makes it very real,” Katrine said.

Denmark’s gender-parity reforms were originally outlined in 2024 as part of a major defense agreement. The program was originally expected to be implemented by early 2027, but has been brought forward to summer 2025.

Col. Kenneth Strøm, head of the conscription program, told AP the move is based on “the current security situation.”

“They could take part in NATO collective deterrence,” Strøm added. “Raising the number of conscripts, that would simply lead to more combat power.”

Denmark, a nation of 6 million people, has about 9,000 professional troops. The new arrangement is expected to bring up to 6,500 annual conscripts by 2033, up from 4,700 last year.

Under Danish law, all physically fit men over age 18 are called up for military service. But because there are usually enough volunteers, there’s a lottery system so not all young men serve. Women, by contrast, could only volunteer previously, making up roughly a quarter of 2024’s cohort.

“Some will probably be very disappointed being chosen to go into the military,” Anne Sofie, part of Katrine’s cohort of volunteers, said of the new female conscripts. “Some will probably be surprised and like it a lot more than they think they would.”

The duration of service is also being extended from four to 11 months. Conscripts will first spend five months in basic training, followed by six months of operational service, plus additional lessons.

Military buildup

The move is part of a broader military buildup by the Nordic nation.

In February, Denmark’s government announced plans to bolster its military by setting up a $7 billion fund that it said would raise the country’s defense spending to more than 3 percent of gross domestic product this year. Parts of the conscript program are being financed by the so-called Acceleration Fund.

“We see a sharpened security situation in Europe. We have the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. We have focus on the Baltic countries, where Denmark is contributing a lot of soldiers. So, I think it’s a general effort to strengthen the Danish defense,” said researcher Rikke Haugegaard from the Royal Danish Defense College.

But Haugegaard notes there are many challenges, from ill-fitting equipment and a lack of additional barracks, to potential cases of sexual harassment.

“For the next year or two, we will be building a lot of new buildings to accommodate all these people. So, it will be a gradual process,” she added.

In 2017, neighboring Sweden instituted a military draft for both men and women after its government spoke of a deteriorating security environment in Europe. Norway introduced its own law applying military conscription to both sexes in 2013.

Two firefighters were killed by gunfire while responding to a brush fire in Coeur d’Alene, a lakeside town in the northwestern US state of Idaho.

The local sheriff’s office reported that a shelter-in-place order was lifted on Sunday night after a tactical team found the body of a man with a firearm nearby. The dead man is believed to be the suspect.

Officials did not disclose his identity or specify the type of weapon recovered.

What happened in Idaho, and when?

Officials said crews responded to a fire at Canfield Mountain in the city at about 1:22pm (20:22 GMT), and gunshots were reported about a half hour later at 2pm (21:00 GMT).

Kootenai County Sheriff Robert Norris said the shooter used high-powered sporting rifles to open rapid fire on first responders.

Two firefighters were killed and, according to authorities, a third one came out of surgery and is in a stable condition but “fighting for his life”.

Norris told reporters on Sunday that authorities believe the suspect intentionally started the fire as “an ambush”.

“We do believe he started it and it was totally intentional what he did,” he added.

However, officials have not spelled out any possible motives for why the suspect might have wanted to ambush the firefighters.

According to reports, more than 300 law enforcement officers and FBI agents responded to the emergency, while police snipers searched the area from helicopters.

Video footage from the area showed smoke rising from forested hillsides, with multiple ambulances and emergency vehicles seen arriving at a local hospital.

Multiple heroic firefighters were attacked today while responding to a fire in North Idaho. This is a heinous direct assault on our brave firefighters. I ask all Idahoans to pray for them and their families as we wait to learn more. Teresa and I are heartbroken.

As this…

— Brad Little (@GovernorLittle) June 29, 2025

Where exactly did it happen?

The Canfield Mountain area is on the eastern outskirts of Coeur d’Alene. It is a popular 24‑acre (10-hectare) natural space featuring hiking and mountain‑biking trails.

Coeur d’Alene, a city of about 55,000 people, is located roughly 260 miles (420 km) east of Seattle.

The mountain is densely covered with trees and thick brush, and its network of trails extends into a national forest.

Who was the shooter?

Based on preliminary evidence, the Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office believes there was only one shooter involved in the attack. Initially, authorities had suspected there might be as many as four.

Authorities located the suspect after detecting mobile phone activity in the area and tracing the signal.

There, they discovered a man who appeared to be deceased with a weapon found nearby. They did not say how the man died, or what firearm was discovered. Norris said that authorities believe the dead man was the shooter. However, the police have not yet revealed his identity.

Police said a man called 911 to report the fire but said that it was unclear if the caller was the gunman.

Update: pic.twitter.com/S60CnpFsyX

— Secretary Brooke Rollins (@SecRollins) June 30, 2025

What do we know about the victims?

Kootenai County officials said they would not release the names of the two firefighters who died.

“Their families will need support,” Sheriff Norris said.

“This is a heinous direct assault on our brave firefighters,” Idaho Governor Brad Little wrote on Facebook.

Officials said the bodies would be transported in a procession to nearby Spokane, Washington, accompanied by a convoy of official vehicles. One of the firefighters was working with the Coeur d’Alene Fire Department; the other served with Kootenai County Fire and Rescue.

Is the area now safe? Was the fire controlled?

The shelter-in-place notice was lifted at 03:50 GMT on Monday.

The wildfire on Canfield Mountain scorched approximately 20 acres (81 hectares), Norris said on Sunday, but no structures were lost in the fire, authorities confirmed.

At 03:00  GMT, authorities confirmed that the fire was still burning.

Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) and Foreign Minister, Ishaq Dar, has said that India must review its policies and cannot impose its will on Pakistan.

Speaking at the Foundation Day ceremony of the Institute of Strategic Studies in Islamabad, Dar warned New Delhi against unilateral actions and reiterated Pakistan’s commitment to regional peace and sovereignty.

He strongly criticised India’s use of “false flag operations” to justify aggression against Pakistan, particularly citing the Pulwama incident, which he said was used by India to stage a fabricated narrative. “India must revisit its strategic choices and end its policy of coercion,” Dar stated.

Tensions between Pakistan and India escalated on April 22, when an attack in Pahalgam killed 26 people. India blamed Pakistan for the incident. Pakistan has categorically rejected Indian accusations.

India then undertook a series of hostile actions the next day on April 23, suspending the 65-year-old Indus Waters Treaty (IWT), cancelling visas for Pakistani citizens, closing the Wagah-Attari border crossing and ordering the shutdown of the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi, among others.

Read: Pak IWT stance vindicated by arbitration court

Both the countries subsequently reduced diplomatic staff at their respective embassies in the other’s territory. 

Referring to water disputes, Dar asserted that India cannot unilaterally suspend the Indus Waters Treaty, accusing it of attempting to weaponise water against Pakistan.

He reaffirmed Pakistan’s resolve to safeguard its territorial integrity and uphold its sovereign rights.

On the Kashmir issue, the DPM said the dispute is internationally recognised and its peaceful resolution is essential for regional stability.

He accused India of openly violating international laws, while reiterating Pakistan’s adherence to the principle of peaceful coexistence.

Commenting on global affairs, Dar welcomed the ceasefire between Iran and Israel and reaffirmed Pakistan’s longstanding support for Iran’s legitimate stance.

He called for dialogue-based resolution of Iran’s nuclear issue and expressed concern over the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, condemning ongoing atrocities in the region.

Separately, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif welcomed the Permanent Court of Arbitration’s Supplemental Award on the Indus Waters Treaty, calling it a major vindication of Pakistan’s stance.

Read more: Bilawal condemns US attack on Iran, warns India over IWT breach

The ruling confirmed that India cannot unilaterally suspend the treaty or its dispute resolution mechanisms.

In a statement on Sunday, the PM said water is vital for Pakistan and praised Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar and Attorney General Mansoor Awan for their legal efforts.

The court stated that the Treaty remains binding unless terminated by mutual consent and does not allow one-sided suspension by either party.

Earlier, Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto Zardari had said that Pakistan would consider war if India refused to honour the Indus Waters Treaty.

“India must choose between honouring the treaty or losing control of all six rivers,” Bilawal said, reaffirming Pakistan’s commitment to protecting its share of water under the 1960 World Bank-brokered agreement.

The comments followed an earlier statement made during a political rally in Sukkur, where Bilawal declared, “Either the river will flow or their blood will.”

Two firefighters were shot dead while responding to a fire in northern Idaho and the body of a man was later found with a gun nearby, the Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office said on Sunday, as it lifted a shelter-in-place order.

Sheriff Bob Norris had earlier said law enforcement officers and firefighters were taking sniper fire and urged people to stay clear of the area around Canfield Mountain, a nature zone popular with hikers near Coeur d’Alene, about 260 miles (420 km) east of Seattle.

“This evening, members of the SWAT team located a deceased male on Canfield Mountain. A firearm was found nearby,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement.

“At this time, the shelter in place is being lifted, however, there is still an active wildfire on Canfield Mountain. Residents in the area are advised to be prepared and ready should further action need to be taken.”

The sheriff said the shooter had used high-powered sporting rifles to fire rapidly at first responders, with law enforcement initially unsure of the number of perpetrators involved.

They were in a spot “with heavy brush and they are well prepared and blending in with their surroundings,” Norris added.

Law enforcement is investigating whether the fire could have been intentionally set to lure first responders to the scene, Kootenai County Sheriff’s Lt. Jeff Howard told ABC News.

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has been briefed on the Idaho shooting, ABC News reported.

Video footage from the scene had earlier shown smoke billowing from heavily wooded hillsides and armed responders preparing, while several ambulances and emergency vehicles were seen entering a nearby hospital.

“FBI technical teams and tactical assets are currently on the scene providing support,” FBI deputy director Dan Bongino wrote on X. “It remains an active, and very dangerous scene.”

Firefighters received the first call of a fire around 1:21 p.m. (2021 GMT), Norris said, and about 40 minutes later, reports emerged that they were being shot at.

“This is a heinous direct assault on our brave firefighters,” Idaho Governor Brad Little said on X. “I ask all Idahoans to pray for them and their families as we wait to learn more.”

Gun ownership is widespread in the US, where the country’s Constitution protects the rights of Americans to “keep and bear arms.”

Deaths related to gun violence are common – 17,927 people were murdered by a gun in 2023 in the US, according to the most recent available data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

 

More than 230,000 Afghans left Iran in June, most of them deported, as returns surge ahead of a Tehran-set deadline, the United Nations migration agency said on Monday.

From June 1-28, 233,941 people returned from Iran to Afghanistan, International Organisation for Migration spokesman Avand Azeez Agha told AFP, with 131,912 returns recorded in the week of June 21-28 alone.

“In total, from 1 January to 28 June 2025, 691,049 people have returned, 70 percent of whom were forcibly sent back,” he said.

The number of returnees surged in recent weeks, as Afghans reported increased deportations and pressure to leave ahead of a July 6 deadline announced by Iran in May for Afghans without documents to leave the country.

For several days last week, the number reached 30,000 per day, the IOM said.

Figures have remained around 6-7,000 in recent days, Taliban border authorities and the UN said, with the numbers expected to increase ahead of the deadline.

Afghan refugees who returned after fleeing Iran to escape deportation and conflict arrive at a UNHCR facility near the Islam Qala crossing in western Herat province, Afghanistan, on June 20, 2025. File
| Photo Credit: AP

Temperatures soared past 40 degrees Celsius (104 F) across parts of Europe over the weekend, as an early-summer heat wave tightened its grip on the continent.

In Spain, temperatures hit 46°C (114.8°F) on Sunday in the town of El Granado, near the Portuguese border, setting a new national heat record for the month of June.

The previous June high of 45.2°C (113.4°F) was set in Seville in 1965.

Temperatures above 40°C were also expected in neighboring Portugal, with the capital, Lisbon, under a “red warning” for heat until Monday night due to “persistently extremely high maximum temperature values,” according to the Portuguese Institute for Sea and Atmosphere.

Extreme heat to reach London

In Italy, 21 cities, including Milan, Naples, Venice, Florence and Rome, were placed on high alert as extreme heat swept across the country.

Local authorities in Greece also issued fresh warnings about the risk of wildfires.

Hot weather is expected to persist into the start of the week, with London predicted to reach up to 35°C on Monday, marking the hottest day of the year so far. 

Wimbledon is set for its hottest opening day on record Monday, possibly breaking the tournament’s all-time heat record.

The current opening day high is 29.3°C, set in 2001. The hottest day ever at Wimbledon was 35.7°C on July 1, 2015.

The German Weather Service on Sunday issued heat warnings for southern and western regions, with peaks of 39°C expected on Wednesday.

Alerts were in place for the states of Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, Hesse, North Rhine-Westphalia, Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland.

French firefighters were battling early summer wildfires with several parts of the country under orange alert.

Blazes in the Corbieres region forced evacuations as temperatures soared past 40°C, peaking at 40.9°C in Grospierres.

Parts of the A61 motorway were closed, and a campsite in Bizanet was evacuated after a barbecue with smoldering embers in a trailer caused several fires, according to local civil protection authorities.

Birds impacted by heat

Meteorologists warn that heat waves are becoming more frequent and arriving earlier in the season due to human-driven climate change.

Spain’s state weather agency, AEMET, noted that only two June heat waves were recorded between 1975 and 2000. That number has surged to nine since 2000. This year, temperatures typical of August arrived by late May.

“Heat waves will become more frequent and more intense,” warned Emanuela Piervitali, a researcher at the Italian Institute for Environmental Protection and Research (ISPRA).

“A further increase in temperature and heat extremes is expected in the future, so we will have to get used to temperatures with peaks even higher than those we are experiencing now.”

In France, experts warned the heat is taking a toll on biodiversity.

“Some nests reach over 40°C,” said Allain Bougrain-Dubourg of the League for the Protection of Birds, adding that their care centers are overwhelmed with struggling birds.

Edited by: Darko Janjevic